GRCC’s Occupational Therapy Assistant program teaches skills for the job of living
Dec. 2, 2024 How does someone learn to get dressed after a hip replacement? How does a child with dyslexia learn to form letters? How does someone recovering from a stroke learn to drive again? All these questions relate to life skills needs and that’s what occupational therapy is about. “An occupational therapy assistant (OTA) helps people learn to function in daily life. This field actually has its roots in mental health, but now you find occupational therapy in many different settings,” said Matthew Mekkes, program director at Grand Rapids Community College. “We work in hospitals, rehabilitation centers, senior care facilities and therapy practices. There’s a growing number of professionals in home health care. And approximately one-third of all practitioners work in schools. Occupational therapy is everywhere.” Right now, this career field is in high demand. In fact, there’s what you might call a perfect storm. “We have a growing population of children receiving special education. We have an aging population that wants to remain independent,” Mekkes said. “We are seeing more people with mental health challenges who need support. And all the baby boomers who used to do this work are retiring. There’s a perfect storm of increasing need, coupled with less supply. That creates a lot of opportunity.” OTAs work under the direction of an occupational therapist and often as part of a team that could include physical therapists, nurses, teachers, special education experts and other professionals. “People sometimes think that an assistant in this field is an extra person who does no independent work, but that could not be further from the truth,” Mekkes said. “The occupational therapist does the initial evaluation and makes the plan. Then the OTA carries out that plan by working directly with the patient. There are check-in meetings to assess progress, but the OTA is doing autonomous work treating the patient or student.” What's the difference between an occupational therapist and an occupational therapy assistant? According to Mekkes, there are two significant differences between an occupational therapist and an OTA. “The first difference is the amount of education required. An occupational therapist has a minimum of a master’s degree and may have a doctorate. That’s six to eight years of education after high school. The OTA program can be completed in two to three years,” Mekkes said. “The other key difference is how much direct patient care is performed. Occupational therapists spend roughly 70% of their time doing hands-on care, and 30% doing paperwork or administration. OTAs spend 90-95% of their time in direct patient care.” GRCC’s program exposes students to a variety of settings where occupational therapy can be applied. “Our students receive a high-quality generalist education. The board exam, which students must pass in order to be licensed, includes all aspects of practice, from infants to geriatrics. Our students have five areas of field work on their resumes when they graduate,” Mekkes said. “They engage in faculty-led field work at a preschool, a homeless shelter and a physical rehabilitation center. They also complete two full-time rotations in which they are working directly with a licensed professional. That exposure helps them prepare for their boards, makes them more marketable, and helps them solidify their primary area of interest. We have a historical board passing rate of 95-100%, and the majority of last year’s students had jobs before they graduated.” Mekkes also notes that the OTA program has broad student appeal. That’s partly because it is not a competitive program. Anyone who has completed the prerequisites can enroll, starting in the fall semester. If there are more applicants than open positions, a wait list process guides entrance to the program. Right now, there is not a wait. “Yes, we have some students fresh out of high school. We also have many students for whom this is a second career, or a career advancement from another area of health care,” Mekkes said. “The average age of students in this program is 28, with many 30-40 year olds in the mix. I think that’s because an OTA can earn a great hourly wage after only two to three years of schooling and without a significant debt burden.” The flexibility of the GRCC program also helps make the program accessible for all students, both at the Main Campus in Grand Rapids as well as the Lakeshore Campus in Holland . “Most students work part- or full-time while going through the program. It requires only one to two days per week of in-person work, outside of the full-time clinical rotations that occur in the final semester,” Mekkes said. “The rest of the program is completed in a hybrid format with a combination of online and in-person classes and labs. We also have many options for clinical rotation placements, including positions throughout West Michigan and in the Lakeshore communities.” Learn more about the Occupational Therapy Assistant program at GRCC. This story was reported by Julie Hordyk.